Striping mechanism for knitting machines



F. W. ROBINSON.

STRIPING MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 5.192].

I PatntedSept. 5,1922.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l APPLICATION FILED JAN. 5 I92].

Patnted Sept. 5, 1922.

3SHEETS-SHEET 2.

F. W. ROBINSON.

STRIPING MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES.

APPLICATION :FILED JAN. 5,, 1921.

1 ,42 8, 8 98, Patented Sept. 5, 1922.

' s SHEETSSHEET 3.

by my improved mechanism.

Patented Sept. 5, 1922.

UNITED srares PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK W. ROBINSON, 0F READING, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR 'I'O SCI-IUYLKILL HOSIERY MILLS, INC., OF READING,PENNS YLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF PENN- SYLVANIA.

STRIPING MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES.

Application filed January 5, 1921. Serial No. 435,215.

To allwhom it may 00mm; I

Be it known that I, FRANK W. ROBINSON,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Reading, in the county of Berks and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Striping Mechanism for Knitting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the manufacture of circularly knitted stockings, andparticularly to the ornamentation thereof by a vertical striping thread introduced withthe usual knitting thread to determined needles; and it consists in improved striping-thread carrier mechanism, with means for cooperatively actuating the same and selected needles, and in the improved product producible thereby, as fully set forth in connection with the accompanying drawings and specifically pointed out in the claims.

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation showing my improvedmechanism in preferred fO1m, 11"1 connection with known knitting machine elements. I

Fig. 2 is a COI'IBSPOIldiHg elevation taken at right angles to Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary plan V18W showing one of the jack-lift cams, and indicating a series of jacks for the striping needles.

Fig. 4 is asectional plan view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1. p

Fig. 5 is a sectional view on the line 5- 5 of Fig. 1, indicating diagrammatically, 1n connection with the corresponding view of Fig. 6, the needle-engaging swing of the striping-thread finger,

Fig. 7 indicates a stocking having characteristic single-thread ornamentation efiected The needle cylinder B, as indicated, is of the well known rotary type, carrying a circular series of needles I) to which the vertical movements incident to ordinary knitting are imparted by relatively fixed cam mechanism; the latter, as well as other commonly used knitting machine parts being omitted so far as their showing is not required for the proper setting forth of my invention. This needle cylinder is shown as of sufficient length to permit of providing in connection with determined needles guided therein, a series of jacks 10 which are separately slidable in the respective needle grooves to independently raise such needles and pattern controlled mechanism for effecting such raisings is illustrated to effect the positioning of the needles required for desired cooperation therewith of my improved striping thread mechanism.

This striping thread mechanism, shown, is carried by a bracket 11, rigidly fixed to the machine frame 12. The overhanging horizontal arm 13 of this bracket has an apcrtured end 14, to which is fixed a vertically depending carrier bar 15 in line with the machine axis and having a camsleeve 16 thereon extending below the shoulder.

This sleeve 16 is held non-rotatively but axially slidable on the bar, by a guide pin or pins 17 passing through a fixed collar 18 on the bar as indicated; and is connected by a link 19 to a pattern-operated lever 20 pivoted at 21 to the bracket arm, so that the cam devices 22, 23, and 24 of the sleeve may be moved into or out of the path of. the splicing-thread carrier device 25-26 as hereinafter fully described.

Two of these thread carrier devices, as shown, are oppositely secured to a rotary sleeve 30 which is rotatably mounted on an axial extension 15 of the fixed carrier bar 15 and is provided with a forked arm 31 arranged in loose engagement with an inward projection 32 of the needle cylinder so as to be rotated with the latter; the devices being thus swung around the relatively fixed cam sleeve 16.

Each carrier device comprises a main part 25 which is pivoted at 25 to a fixed collar 40 on the sleeve 30 so as to swing in a radial plane; and a thread finger part 26 having an angularly arranged shank portion 26 rotatively mounted in said part 25. The head icated, to the right latter and approximately in line with theicircular series of needles, is imparted to the threaded end of the fingers by means of an arm 26 on the shank portion 26; said. arm

- plane swing of the thread carrier part 25 and circular swing of the finger 26, is to cause the latter to carry its thread to the outside of the circular series of needles, and a determined distance along the needle line so as to cause the thread to engage with any needles within such distance which are so raised as to cooperate in the engaging action, and finally to return to starting pos'i-' tion; this engaging movement being indicated in Figs. 5 and 6 as supplyingthe striping thread to two separated raised groups of three needles each which are includedwithin the determined circular swingof the" finger 26.

To insure that the thread thus supplied to these selectedneedles, will be uniformly placed exterior to the usual knitting thread thereon, I provide for efi'ecting an additionalvertlcal movement of the finger 26 relative to the main part 25 of the thread carrier device,-

by securing to the sleeve 16 the so-called plating-cam 24, so arranged as to contact with the upper end of the finger shank 26 and to properly depress the finger and the needle engaging striping thread; against the upward prewure of spring 44 which also exerts the torsionalstrain upon said shank previously referred to. As illustrated in Fig. 1 the outward swing of the thread finger upon the pivotal connection 25, raises the threaded end of the finger, while the plating cam 24 enables any desired loweringof it to insure the proper placing of the thread.

It will be understood that the determined needle-engaging movements of the striping-thread carrier devices 25-26 will be regularly efi'ected at each machine revolution whenever the cam sleeve 16 is lowered to the striping position indicated in Fig.

1. In order that these movements may beefi'ective upon any determined needle or needles within this fixed needle-engaging swing, I provide a pattern-controlled mechanism for independently raising any of such needles as desired; to thread-engaging position; in connection with a depressing cam therefor. Thus two raised groups of three needleseach are indicated in Figs. 5Land 6,

as being engaged by the striping thread, while the lower intervening needles are not position as determined by a suitable re eases in the stocking product illustrated in- Fig.

27, two parallel stripes w, w; while the lowerlng of one of these two groups of needles will stop stripe m, as at the narrowed and widened heel pocket indicated in Fig. 7,1eavin the stripe w to continue down the foot portion of the stocking; or if both these groups be lowered and certain intervening needles be raised to:v en a e the thread, a single'midway stri e y will e produced; while the ornamenta arrowhead end Z of the stripe may be formed as shown .b

properly varyingthe numberof jacks wh'cli are raised in successive courses. To produce the wide cross-bar V shown in Fig. 7 the whole series of jacks which are shown as included within the swing of the finger 26 must be raised together.

The mechanism shown forv thus varying the needles which are raised for engagementof the striping thread by the regularly swung thread fin ers 26, comprises a series of jacks 10, whlch arranged in the cyli'nder gIOOVQS- Of fifteen consecutive needles for each finger, as shown; 'so as to prac- 1 tically form bottom extensions of said needles; 'and a series of three inclined jack lift cams, 51, 52, and 53, arranged to be i moved into and out of the path of butts formed on the jacks at different heights indicated in Fig. l, as automatically determined by the pattern wheel. One of these cams is shown in Fig. 3, relative to a whole series of jacks 10 the butts of which are,

indicated as of three difierent lengths; so that a limited inward movement thereof will engage only the longest jack-butts located in that path, while further inward movement'will also engage shorter butts in the same path; and the other two cams are similarly movable into thepath of difi'erent length butts on other jacks, arranged in the different planes. These -difierent inward movements of the several cams are automatically effected through jack-levers 55, 56, 57 pivot to the machine frame at 68,

and having their lower ends'riding on pat tern wheel sections '69 provided with cam projections 58, 59, 60 of difi'erent heights adapted to impart the desired inward swlngs to the upper ends of said levers; which latter bear against and are spring-connected to the respective jack-lift. .cams. movement is imparted to said pattern wheel sections through a pawl 65 operated through bell-cranks66, 67 and connections in wellknown manner.

The special depressing cam 50 is provided for the purpose of lowering the needles pre liminary to raising selected ones for any desired striping by determined operation of their jacks. lit normally swings upward freely upon its pivot 70, but is held in inelined Towering position at determined Rotary times by a lever 71 which is operated having needle-cylinder and o erating-cam mechanisms; a striping-threa carrier device comprising a pivoted part arranged to swing in a radial plane and a thread-carrying finger rotatively mounted in said radially-swingable part; and cam devices operative respectively upon said swinging and rotative parts to jointly produce needle-engaging movements of said finger.

'2. In combination with a knitting machine having needle-cylinder and operatingcam mechanisms; a radially and rotatively movable striping-thread finger; cam devices operative thereon to produce regular needleengagmg movements of said finger; and a.

pattern-controlled series of jacks independently operative upon determined needles to temporarilyrraise them into cooperative relation to said finger.

3. In combination with a knltting machine having needle-cylinder and operating-cam mechanisms; a radially and rotatively movable striping-thread finger; cam devices operatiy e thereon to produce'regular needleengaging movements of said finger; a pattern-controlled series of jacks independently operative upon determined needles to temporarily raise them into cooperative relation to said finger; and a pattern-controlledneedle-depressing cam.

4:. In combination with a knitting machine having needle cylinder and operatingcam mechanism; a striping-thread carrier device comprising a pivoted part arranged to swing in a radial plane, and a threadcarrying finger having an angularlyarranged shank portion slidably and rotatively -mounted in said pivoted part; a'cam device operative upon said pivoted part; and separate cam devices operative upon said'shank portion of the finger to respectively turn and slide the same.

5. In combination with. a knitting machine having needle-cylinder and operatingcam mechanisms; a radially and rotatively movable striping-thread finger; camdevices operative thereon to produce regular needleengaging movements of said finger; a series of jacks operative upon determined needles and provided with butts of dii ferent lengths arranged at different hei hts", and a p1urality of pattern-operated Jack-lift cams arranged in the respective jack-butt paths.

In testimony whereof I atfix my signature.

FRANK W. ROBINSON. 

